While the cricketing world waits to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the passing away of Australian cricketer Phillip Hughes later this month, Tom Cooper, one of his South Australia’s team-mates has recalled how Hughes was fascinated by the idea of having a farm raising cows and would also have to look million dollars.

In a chat with Codesports, Cooper, a former South Australia batsman recalled about his days spent with Hughes and how the Australian Test cricketer once celebrated one of his cows’ wins at a competition after posting a ton in a domestic game at MCG.

“Coops, get your clothes on, we’re going out. My heifer’s just won at the Macksville Show!” So we were out because one of his cows had just won first prize, not because he’d just peeled off a hundred. He had the bling and loved the bright lights. But he talked with his mum and dad daily. Everything was about his cows. He had his farm setup. He talked about that more than he talked about cricket. If his cow didn’t win he’d be shattered. But with cricket, and obviously he was very mentally strong, but it was just a game,” recalled Cooper while speaking with Codesports.

While Hughes had made his Test debut against South Africa in 2009, Cooper had been playing for South Australia during that time. Years later, Hughes would make a move to South Australia and it also meant that the two NSW boys would share rooms and would also stay together during their stays in Melbourne. Recalling a run-out incident when the two batted together for the first time for SA, where he sacrificed his wicket for Hughes, Cooper shared how Hughes improved his game with time. “It was almost like a myth before it even happened. Obviously, the rumours were about all these runs he was scoring, but at that stage, like he wasn’t a big man, when he was an adult, like he was literally knee high to a grasshopper at that stage, and could only score runs behind the wicket. His cut shot, that’s why he sort of was so good at it I guess. They clearly couldn’t get him out, and he scored runs, but it wasn’t like he dominated, he didn’t smack attacks but he just scored runs,” said Cooper.

The former SA batsman also recalled how Hughes would wash his own dishes and iron his clothes but always wanting to look a million dollars. “There was nothing in the fridge apart from a bottle of water, no food in the cupboards, an ironing board was set up in the kitchen. So basically, he used the kitchen to iron his stuff because he always had to look at a million dollars. I obviously spent a fair bit of time around there, ‘it was almost like, ‘ how is this guy surviving?’” said Cooper.

Hughes had passed away on November 27, 2014, two days after he was struck on the neck during a Sheffield Shield match and three days short of his 26th birthday. Cooper too had suffered a hit at almost the same spit while batting during a Shield match in 2009. Post Hughes death, Cooper had to take help for post-traumatic stress disorder. “For six months (in 2009), I had woke up like I was hung over every day, wasn’t allowed to run, wasn’t allowed to do any sport, wasn’t allowed to watch TV. But then six months later, like I was fine as such, I was back playing that next season, so whilst it rattled me, then everyone’s telling me how they’re gonna hit me in the head again, or whatever, but I was fine as such. To see this happen and it was literally within millimetres, and obviously him not be fine that was all quite surreal. And we realised how lucky I actually was.” said Cooper.